Running head: INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

Innovating Japan’s English Education

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INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

2Abstract
Although Japan’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ranks 3rd in the world today, Japanese society
is facing the serious problems of a decrease in global competitive power and introversion causedby poor English education. Nowadays, English is one of the most spoken languages in the world,
making fluent English essential to global success. However, Japan’s English education system isinsufficient. The insufficient English education in Japan is producing “examination English”
which is only useful when taking examinations. Therefore, Japanese people cannot speak
English fluently when interacting with people overseas. The influent English is stressful and ismaking the Japanese lose their confidence. Loss in confidence makes Japanese companies
unmotivated when advancing into overseas markets causing introversion. These negative factors
are causing a decrease in global competitive power to Japanese companies. In order to save theJapanese economy from unstabability, the Japanese government must consider changing Japan’sEnglish education system. Production of practical English is essential for Japan’s successfulfuture.

INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

3Innovating Japan’s English Education
Japan’s insufficient English education is leading to useless English, causing negative
effects to Japanese society such as a decrease in global competitive power and introversion.
English is an essential skill for success in the global world today. However, Japan’s English
education system is deteriorating, causing a decrease to the English level in Japan. The low levelof English is inducing the Japanese to lose their confidence, making them introverted, ultimately
causing Japanese companies to lose their global competitive powers. In order to solve theseproblems, Japan’s English education system must put more stress on writing and reading, as wellas making it easier to study abroad.
Background of Japan’s English Education
Although Japan is one of the most advanced countries in the world, the English level ofJapan is declining. According to the ETS (2011), Japan marked 27th out of the 30 Asian
countries in the TOEFL test scores. This is a low score considering that Japan has the 3rd highest
GDP in Asia. On the other hand, Japanese people spend more than 2000 hours in their life time
studying English, meaning that the hard work of the Japanese people is not paying off.
According to a survey done by Shunkan Research News (2013), 75% of 36,898 people said thatthey thought that the English education system in Japan needs to be changed. Efficient English
education is the demand of today’s Japanese people.
Practice doesn’t always pay off. Japanese people spend much time studying English, but
improvement cannot be seen in their English abilities. This is because Japan’s English education
system is based on how to succeed in Japan’s fiercely competitive entrance examinations. In
other words, English education in Japan is only made to succeed in examinations, rather than

INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION4aiming for efficiency. According to the survey done by Shunkan Research News (2013), peopleanswered that Japan’s English education system needs to aim more on nurturing the ability to“speak” and “write” English. This “examination English” is one of the largest burdens forJapan’s improvement of English.
Japan’s English education system is not practical. In Japan’s English education, grammarand vocabulary is considered important. As a result, Japanese people are unable to use Englishefficiently in their future occupations. The Japanese can read and write English to a certain level,
but they cannot listen and speak English without having difficulties. According to Sakai (n.d.),
59.6% of students who answered that they have difficulty studying English said that theyespecially have trouble speaking English. The ability of “speaking English” is much morepractical than just learning grammar and vocabulary. In order to make negotiations smooth withpeople from foreign countries, and to succeed on a universal scale, Japan’s English educationmust be changed into a practical one.
Changing Japan’s English education system will solve the negative effects it has, leading
to higher levels of English, revitalizing the Japanese economy.
Negative Effects to the Japanese Society
Introversion and a decrease in global competitive power are the two main negative effects
induced by the poor English education. These two factors are breaking down the Japanesesociety and economy.
Introversion
The low level of English is causing a decrease in global confidence, making the Japanesenationality introverted. According to Koji Mikitani (2013), president and chairman of Rakuten
Inc., “The poor English is causing Japanese companies to become introverted, and JapaneseINNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

5companies are going against the trend of time.” The poor English education in Japan is making
the Japanese lose their confidence as a globally advanced nation, causing them to become
introverted.
Decreasing Global Competitive PowerIntroversion is causing the Japanese economy and society to gradually break down,
making Japanese companies lose their global competitive power. Without global competitivepower, Japanese companies are going to lose their global reliance and Japan’s economy will
collapse.
The introverted attitude of the Japanese companies is causing the Japanese economy toshrink. The Department of Treasury of the Japanese Government (2013) announced that Japan’s
trade deficit was the worst since the department started recording, in the 2013 first report,
marking 4.8438 trillion yen. Trade deficit is induced when the import value is superior to theexport value. Introversion is causing Japanese companies to stay inside the Japanese economy,
and Japanese companies are not capable of advancing into the overseas markets. This is causing
the export value to decline, inflating Japan’s trade deficit. Japanese companies must take backtheir confidence and act to advance into the overseas markets.
Without advancing into overseas markets, Japanese companies are starting to lose theirglobal competitive power. Currently, customs duties are put on most overseas’ products inJapanese markets because Japanese products cannot compete without adjusting their prices.
According to the International Institute for Management Development (2013), Japan marked
24th out of 60 countries in the World Competitiveness Ranking. On the other hand, other Asiancountries marked higher rates. Hong Kong marked 3rd, Singapore was 5th, Taiwan was 10th,Malaysia was 15th, Mainland China was 21st, and Korea was 22nd. Putting into mind that Japan isINNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

6a relatively advanced nation, this is considered a low position. Japan needs to recover its global
competitive power in order to sustain its position as an advanced country in the world.
The introverted attitude of Japanese society led by the low level of English education iscausing the Japanese economy to shrink, making Japanese companies lose their global
competitive power.
SolutionsJapan’s insufficient English education may be solved by two ways. First, Japan shouldchange its education of English from “examination English” into “practical English.” Thesecond solution is to make it easier to study abroad. These solutions are likely to solve the lowlevel of English as well as solve the negative effects induced by it.
Practical English Education
Japan must change the system of English education. The current English Education
system in Japan puts stress on grammar and vocabulary because it is based on getting highscores in examinations. However, in order to make the English education practical, the system
must put more stress on writing and speaking.
Learning how to write long forms of writing at a young age will not only improve Japan’sEnglish level, but will also enable people to acquire skills needed to succeed in futureoccupations such as research skills and reporting skills. A survey was done by Hideki Sakai(n.d.) asking when Japanese students find difficulties in their English. According to the survey,
72% of students answered that they found English difficult when writing English. However,learning how to write essays is inevitable for English education. First, research skills will be
developed by writing long forms of writing. Through researching, the writer will have many
opportunities to read English literature, giving the writer many chances of improving the writer’sINNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

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English. Also, high levels of research skills will lead to the person having a wide range ofknowledge, which will be essential to future occupations. In addition, reporting skills will bedeveloped. Through reporting opinions, vocabulary and grammar will be naturally achieved,
which will be a much more effective way of achieving vocabulary and grammar than the current
English education system. When writing, the writer will have to research, build up the writer’sopinion, and finally report the writer’s opinion. The same procedures are taken in mostoccupations. Through “practical English education,” people will not only be able to improvetheir English, but will also acquire important skills that will be useful in the future, benefiting
the Japanese economy.
Japan’s English education system is not sufficient in the means of speaking. According toHideki Sakai, 65.8% of students answered that they found difficulties when listening to English
and 59.6% answered that they found difficulties when speaking English. Opportunities tospeaking English are too little in the current English education system. Without being able tospeak English, the English which the Japanese citizens speak will end up as useless. In order toimprove their English speaking skills, Japan’s English education system must put more stress onspeaking.
Putting stress on writing and speaking will be much more practical than the current
English education system. It will lead to higher levels of English, giving more confidence theJapanese, solving the problem of introversion and lack of global competitive power.
Studying AbroadJapanese people do not have enough opportunities of studying abroad. According to theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Japan marks 2nd from last out of 33
countries concerning the number of students studying abroad. Japanese students have lost theirINNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION

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confidence of English, making them stay inside the country. In order to solve these problems,
the Japanese government must make it easier for students to study abroad. For example, thegovernment should give more scholarships to people who want to study abroad. People whowant to study abroad will be funded, making it easier to go abroad. Studying English abroad willlead to recovering the level of English, ultimately solving the negative effects brought by thelow level of English.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the current English education system in Japan is creating low level ofEnglish, which is causing negative effects to the Japanese economy and society. The low ofEnglish is causing introversion and lack of global competitive power. English education needsinnovation. In order to make the English education system superior, “Practical English education”
must be adopted as a new method, and giving chances to study abroad will be essential. To makethe Japanese economy and society reach global standards, innovating Japan’s English education
system is essential.

INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION
References
ETS. (2013). Test and Score Data Summary for TOEFL iBT Tests and TOEFL PBT Tests.
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Sakai, Hideki. (n.d.). Survey on the Present Situation and Motivation of English Education.
Retrieved August 15, 2013, from http://benesse.jp/berd/center/open/report/chu_eigo/hon/pdf/data_06.pdf
Shunkan Research News. (2013, June, 10). 75% Answered that English Education must be
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Department of Treasury. (2013, July, 24). 2013 First Half Data of Trade. Retrieved August 8,
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The Sankei Shimbun. (2013, February, 24). Upper House Election Manifest “English as a First

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INNOVATING JAPAN’S ENGLISH EDUCATION
Language?” Koji Mikitani Announces need for Improvement in English Education.
Retrieved August 8, 2013, from http://sankei.jp.msn.com/smp/politics/news/130221/stt13022122450008-s.htm

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